page_title: Becker Farm Railroad
section_title: A favorite with kids of all ages
hierarchical_section_title: Becker Farm Railroad / A favorite with kids of all ages
caption_attribution_description: English: The 1968 high bridge still stands Summary The 1968 high bridge still stands
context_page_description: The Becker Farm Railroad was located on the Becker dairy farm in Roseland, New Jersey, US. This 2-inch scale, 9 ⁷⁄₁₆ in gauge miniature railway, which featured a live steam locomotive, small-scale diesel locomotives, and small-scale passenger cars, was the brainchild of Eugene Becker. The railroad dated back to 1938, with the first revenue trips taking place ten years later.
  The railroad was modeled after the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad's Sussex Branch, on which Becker had a creamery at Straders, New Jersey, near the end of the line at Branchville, NJ. After World War II, the C&S RR was extended to Peachtree Jct., approximately one mile from Centerville Station. Peachtree Jct. was not initially built as a continuous track, but rather as a wye track that allowed the engine to be moved from the front to the rear of the train for the return trip. By 1949, the track had been extended to the edge of the Becker property in a 2,000 foot loop that eliminated the need for using the wye track. A total of 7,000 feet of track had been laid.
context_section_description: Although the C&S was a miniature railroad, it was operated as if it were a real railroad. Becker, who was very much a railfan and live-steam enthusiast, went to great lengths and expense to create the feel of a real operating railroad. The ride was arguably quite scenic as well.  Given that the railroad operated in northern New Jersey, where Becker had numerous customers who received milk deliveries—from the milkman—the railroad was also a unique public relations tool. From the late 1940s until well into the 1960s, the operation was extremely well patronized by the public.
  In addition to the C&S, the Becker Farm also sold fresh vegetables, milk, chocolate milk and orange juice at a farm stand adjacent to the station.  A favorite snacking spot was at the banks of Roaring Brook where one could sip one's chilled drink, munch on freshly harvested carrots, and watch the trains pass over the nearby trestle, all this while cows mooed and pigs oinked in the distance.
caption: This 1990 photo shows the C&S's "high bridge", built in 1968 as part of the realignment of the railroad due to I-280's encroachment at Peachtree Junction.  It's probably safe to assume that most of the workers at the Becker Farm Road business campus have no idea that the bridge they are crossing once carried a miniature railroad.  Note the concrete bridge abutment.
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